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Q Who should I vote for as president in this year's general election?

Identify what values and qualifications are important to you in a presidential candidate, such as honesty, integrity, leadership and political experience, vision, and the ability to communicate and inspire.

Examine each candidate's position on key issues, such as the current status of the national debt, foreign policy, environmental challenges, Social Security, education, and healthcare reform. As a nurse leader, it's extremely important that you become knowledgeable about the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which largely had its constitutionality upheld by the Supreme Court on June 28. For more information about the ACA's implementation, visit http://www.healthcare.gov.

Research each candidate's voting history, which will be helpful in determining where he stands on aparticular issue.

Collect as much information as you can about the candidates from such sources as credible press reports and websites, campaign literature, opinion polls, and TV ads.

Obtain information about each candidate's background and experience to help you evaluate his ability to lead as the president of the United States.

Learn about each candidate's endorsements, which will provide additional insight into the political issues that he supports.

Compile the information you've gathered and compare what you consider to be the strengths of each candidate. This will provide the knowledge you need when it comes time for you to cast your vote for president.

Q Is the Magnet Recognition Program® going to change its requirements again?

According to the Magnet Recognition Program website FAQs, future revisions include a new source of evidence (SOE) to be added to the Magnet® application in 2013. The SOE reads: “Provide an action plan and set a target, which demonstrates evidence of progress toward having 80% of direct care registered nurses obtain a baccalaureate degree in nursing or higher by 2020.”1 Organizations won't be scored on this SOE between June 1, 2013 and June 1, 2015. The Commission on Magnet Recognition will review the results of the SOE and make a decision regarding scoring before June 1, 2015. This new SOE is aligned with the Institute of Medicine's proposal to increase the number of nurses with a BSN degree to 80% by 2020.

In addition, there are SOEs that have changed since the inception of the five model components in 2008. For example, the initial requirement was that by January 1, 2011, 75% of nurse managers must have a degree in nursing (BSN or MSN), which will change to 100% by January 1, 2013. Another change is that by 2012, organizations must provide unit-level data on all applicable patient outcome indicators, including bloodstream infections, urinary tract infections, ventilator-associated pneumonia, restraints, pediatric I.V. infiltrates, and other specialty-specific indicators.2 This requirement was moved from 2010 to 2012 due to the lag in reporting benchmarking data.

As the Magnet Recognition Program continues to evolve, I recommend that you visit the FAQs and 2008 Manual updates sections of the American Nurses Credentialing Center website (http://www.nursecredentialing.org) to stay informed of any changes or clarifications.